“Tóciowie 2”. They replaced Dorociñski with a younger model, but Kuna is in the foreground [RECENZJA]

The success of the first part was largely determined by the base material – Marek Modzelewski’s excellent tragicomedy “Shame”, in which – when it was staged at the Contemporary Theater in Warsaw – Izabela Kuna played the role of Małgorzata. On the screen, the actress, privately in a relationship with Modzelewski for years, is “the other mother-in-law” – tense, critical, often downright mean, both to her future/would-be son-in-law and to his parents.

Woronowicz is the king of comedy, but this time in the foreground is Iza Kuna

The “in-laws” carried out the action fantastically, sending the camera into various corners of the hotel where a wedding reception related to a wedding that did not take place takes place. In the sequel, the couple wants to make a second attempt at legalizing their relationship – this time, however, they decide to get married on the beach in a less traditional way. Therefore, small-town Wanda (Kuna) and her husband Tadeusz (Adam Woronowicz) go by plane to an exclusive hotel. Already at the airport, they meet Małgorzata (Maja Ostaszewska) who sees herself as “worldly” and her mother (Ewa Dałkowska), as well as a new hero played by Eryk Kulm Jr. We immediately know that there will be tensions, and we can also expect gags related to, for example, Wanda and Tadeusz’s fear of new things when they go to the resort for the first time.

Now there was nothing to adapt, Modzelewski put the well-known characters in completely new situations, so we can still find the atmosphere of the original here. This time, Kalina Aladrukińska took the director’s chair. I don’t know what would have happened if Jakub Michalczuk, who made a great debut with the previous “In-Laws”, had stayed there. He went in a different direction, soon in cinemas we will see Sonia and Borys Szyc in his “It Was Supposed to Be Absent”. Aladrukińska doesn’t really experiment, maybe that’s a pity.

It was obvious that Woronowicz, who thanks to “In-laws” and “The Office PL” became for me the king of Polish comedy, would play his hero with eloquence and brilliance, as well as tenderness even in moments when Tadeusz’s xenophobia comes out. That Ostaszewska will once again piss us off with Małgorzata’s hypocrisy, while at the same time making us laugh – and even arouse empathy. In general, two women have more screen time than Tadeusz, but in “Tościach 2” it is Kuna and her Wanda who stand out. – In the second part, she will discover the layers of femininity in herself, previously carefully hidden, but deep down she will become good old Wanda: grumpy and malicious – says the actress.

Kuna’s husband wrote the script for “In-Laws 2”, but we are not dealing with nepotism here

The talented Kuna certainly didn’t get a role in a play or on the screen because of her acquaintance. Whether “after conditions” remains a sweet secret of the couple who met in the theater in 2004. The well-coordinated Modzelewski-Kuna duo is said to be one that understands each other very well, but can also put a finger on each other with love. – It’s great to spend time with them, because they are both witty and very mischievous. It’s a kind of performance when you watch them – said their friend Marta Kuligowska a few years ago. Wanda, on the other hand, sticks to her guns, but she ignores love. In “The In-Laws 2”, however, we will see her sometimes gentler side.

I have the feeling that the second part of the story about these characters is not as good as the first, but it does not change the fact that it is still filled with insightful observations about ourselves. At the same time, it’s a really funny movie and the characters are more human. Sometimes the story goes too far into laughing at stereotypes and is less sophisticated, but thanks to a movie screening you can spend a pleasant 95 minutes without feeling idiotic, and there will also be room for reflection. The story is largely based on dialogues, the abundance of which, however, is not overwhelming because they are delivered masterfully by the actors. This is also pointed out by, among others, Woronowicz:

What distinguishes ‘The In-Laws’, both the first and second parts, from other films is the dialogue structure. What the characters talk about, how they talk, how dense the dialogues are. All this gives the whole thing a unique character.

I admit that I was disappointed that Marcin Dorociński was not in the cast when I heard about the production of “Tościów 2”, because his character was phenomenal and he was great, as usual. After the screening, however, my fears about the lack of this person, who slightly tipped the scale of raging emotions and grievances towards peace, were dispelled. The three remaining in-laws are doing fine, and the script with Eryk Kulm Jr. it is not glued on by force. The one with Andrzej Zieliński is.

I have some reservations about how the threads of the newly divorced Małgorzata and Wanda discovering sexuality (and others) end. I would present what happened during the wedding itself differently, but – and this will not be a spoiler, but a premonition based on the creators’ message – maybe we will get a chance for a different ending, because the situation of the characters leaves the option of a third part. I would love to see a confrontation between the characters of Kulm and Dorociński and these two good actors in a scene together, I’m just suggesting…

The article uses materials from the distributor of the film Next Film.